US releases detained immigrants, citing sequestration cuts

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement security contractor carries chains for Honduran immigration detainees before their deportation flight to San Pedro Sula, Honduras, on Thursday.

A security contractor hired by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), checks the mouth of a Honduran immigration detainee before a deportation flight to San Pedro Sula, Honduras, on Feb. 28, 2013, in Mesa, Ariz. ICE operates four to five flights per week from Mesa to Central America, deporting hundreds of undocumented immigrants detained in Western states of the U.S. With the possibility of federal budget sequestration, ICE released 303 immigration detainees in the past week from detention centers throughout Arizona. More than 2,000 immigration detainees remain in ICE custody in the state. Most detainees remain in custody for several weeks before they are deported to their home country, while others remain for longer periods while their immigration cases work through the courts. Read the full story.

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Immigrant detainees walk through the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility on Thursday.